Fastenal and shipping..........

[ronn]

Read on one of the threads here that Fastenal ships throughout the US and very reasonably....

Well, I called them on Thursday for a shipping quote, gave them the box's dimensions and shipping weight-zips to and from, etc.
Was told I would have a quote by the end of the day-nothing.
Tried again on Friday-nothing
After speaking to the 5th person today since this started, still have nothing.

Greyhound has terrible service, but nothing like this.
How do companies like this stay in business? I want to know the secret, so I too can start a multi million dollar co, collect the payday and retire early!

So much for hard working America................

[jm29henry]

good to know ,thanks for sharing better you'se the UPS man or Fedex

[jimvette59]

Just purchased two 16" spoked wheels with mounted tires from a fellow member here on Ford Barn. I payed 75.00 for shipping through Fastenal from a county near Buffalo NY to the East end of Long Island NY. about 400 miles,I think . Granted it takes longer than UPS and USPS or Fedex but is much cheaper.

[whirnot]

Must be a different Fastenal than I deal with. They are a major fasterner and tool sales company

[d.]

It's the same Fastenal...they just use their shipping network to fill in empty spaces on their trucks. They have 2600 stores, mostly in the Mid-West and Eastern states.
I used their online quote and got an answer in about an hour...I even got a follow up call from the local store to see if I had any other questions. The quote was easily under UPS or FedEx Ground.

[1crosscut]

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Originally Posted by whirnot

Must be a different Fastenal than I deal with. They are a major fasterner and tool sales company

Same company. They just add private packages as space on their trucks allows so it can take a bit longer.

Ronn try this link for a shipping quote.
http://www.fastenal.com/web/en/22/th...91!-1800964070
They have always gotten back to me in short order. I didn't have a lot of luck doing it by phone the first couple of times I shipped with them. I do know that they will not ship overly long items as I was not able to ship splash shields and long running boards through them.

[d.]

the quote I got was for front fenders with the running boards attached (!), so some stores seem OK with longer pieces I guess.
I went through a similar thing with FedEx sometime back where the local shop wanted some tires and wheels individually wrapped before he would accept the shipment. I went to a different FedEx office in the next town, where the guy taped labels to the bare tires and wheels and off they went.
There are different interpretations of "Company Policy" apparently.

[ronn]

hey crosscut,
I started out with their online form................ all downhill from there.

[Roadster62]

First badmouthing of Fastenal I've read. I'll check what the HAMB folks think of the service. Bob

[Rocketsled]

I shipped an antique engine to Illinois and an engine-size water pump to Virginia via Fastenal. The guys in my local branch were inept and I had to keep pushing them to get it going. The items arrived safely, the cost was much less and was paid by the recipients at their end. Communication between Fastenal locations may have been part of the problem.

[ABento]

I went to fastenal looked up the type of rivits I needed they told me two days to get here to the store,two days I call,zip,next day I call zip, next day they finally tell me they just ordered them,I hung up on them two weeks later they called and tell me my rivits just came in,I explained where they could stock them and hung hung up,don't need service like that.

[SSsssteamer]

A quote taken from the StanleySteamers.com forum: I may just go with Fastenal. We have shipped a few items with Fastenal and have had decent results. I'm going to work on getting it crated well as this means the world when it comes to successful shipping. Thanks!

[noboD]

Originally Posted by Roadster62

First badmouthing of Fastenal I've read. I'll check what the HAMB folks think of the service. Bob

If you really want to hear how bad Fastenall is ask me sometime. We use them at work, never have what we want.

[48fordnut]

I may have been the one that posted about fastenal originally. I had a tank shipped from Pa to Ga. Took several days, no problem. Went to store, and they had it. The shipping mgr in Pa sent me an e mail apologizing for it being late..

Next I sent some wheels to the n/e area. Called and talked with the mgr in Atl, was quoted 80 bucks ,I said thanks, but that is too much. She then said I can do 50 ,and I took it.
Same scene, customer went to store, and pkg was there. They didn't have paper work with his contact info.
Sloppy way to run what could be a profitable side business.

[eagle]

I wonder if Fastenal is franchised? I use them often and the customer service from the two stores I deal with is absolutely great! Wadena, MN and Alexandria, MN.

[Roadster62]

I use FedEx Ground for large packages, but the Fastenal shipping setup sounds impressive, empty space being filled with stuff that may ship cheaper, and help pay their fuel cost. Greayhound is another great cheap shipper.............but not is the best part of town. Bob

[wrndln]

I have had very good service from Fastenal locally here in Lakeville, MN. I have been able to get small quantities of many different types of slotted wood and machine screws. It usually takes 4 or 5 days for the local store to get them in, but that is OK as I usually don't need the screws any sooner. I have never tried to ship anything with them, as I have used Greyhound bus for the 4 or 5 large items I have purchased and had shipped to me.
Rusty Nelson

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

FWIW, I just went through a similar situation with Fastenal where a engine did not get expedited like it was supposed to. After a few phone calls, I reached David Sandel who is the 3PL (Third Party Logistics) Administrator with Fastenal, ...and I must tell you that I was impressed after he got involved. The issue is the company has been doing this for awhile however the stores are not accustomed to it yet. He has assured me they are working hard to educate their store employees, and to please bear with them. What I came to realize is their service has been around for awhile but what they were doing is doing LTL shipping for their customers, and only recently branched into doing transportation for private individuals. My suggestion is give them another chance, and if you are still not satisfied, then find someone in management to see if you can get satisfaction.

[ronn]

Well Brent,
I not only spoke with the local branch 3x, but sent in the quote form to corporate-spoke with Tanya at corporate on Friday and still have absolutely nothing........................
some people don't deserve to be in business.

BTW- my brother stopped in their store 3x in the past for basic bolts-they never had a thing. I wish I had a better outlook on their business, but when people bitch about not having jobs, I can only wonder how much more they want for doing nothing.

[Roger V]

Unfortunately like many businesses, not all branches are the same. My Fastenal is great. Orders come in quick and they take good care of my wishes. While they know very well about the private individual shipping and showed me some examples, I have not tried it.

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Originally Posted by ronn

Well Brent,
I not only spoke with the local branch 3x, but sent in the quote form to corporate-spoke with Tanya at corporate on Friday and still have absolutely nothing........................
some people don't deserve to be in business.

BTW- my brother stopped in their store 3x in the past for basic bolts-they never had a thing. I wish I had a better outlook on their business, but when people bitch about not having jobs, I can only wonder how much more they want for doing nothing.

Actually, Tawnya Johnson who is/was a system administrator is who you spoke with however about 2 weeks ago she was re-assigned to a special project. Again, I understand how you feel but my feelings after speaking with David is I am going to keep working with them, ...at least for the short term. Best wishes in whatever you decide to do.

[spdway1]

You get what you pay for!

[ronn]

Finally recd my quote last night and will be giving them a shot.
Told them their response was worse then greyhound and recd some laughter.
I understand this isn't their primary business, but if you're going to do something in life, need to do it right. Not worth the bad publicity for a luke warm attempt......

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Ronn, check your PMs.

[JTW]

I used Fastenal to ship an engine block from Maine to Virginia, $100 and 6 days. It was the first time that the local store had done it, and they were very helpful and it went smoothly.

[1crosscut]

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Originally Posted by JTW

I used Fastenal to ship an engine block from Maine to Virginia, $100 and 6 days. It was the first time that the local store had done it, and they were very helpful and it went smoothly.

I've been shipping with Fastenal for close to two years. I'm not in a "large" city but still with a population of over 270,000 I'm the only one that has done any shipping through the local branch.